How Brothels Provided Protection For Their Workers in Medieval Europe

Since prostitution is considered illegal in many countries, sex workers are not under labor protection laws which endanger them for possible abuses in the industry they work. That same discourse on whether sex work should be legalized or not can take inspiration from what legal brothels in Medieval Europe did for the women who worked there.

Karras, who studies gender and sexuality, writes that throughout Europe, medieval authorities generally recognized sex work as a necessary evil. Theologians followed the teachings of Saint Augustine, who wrote that it was better for sinful men to frequent brothels than to “corrupt” their wives or other respectable women with nonprocreative sex: “Remove prostitutes from human affairs and you will destroy everything with lust.”
Sex workers were acknowledged as useful, and yet the practice of sex work was still seen as terribly sinful. “Lust was considered the woman’s sin par excellence and the prostitute epitomized it,” Karras writes.

Despite the stigma, different municipalities set up regulations such that workers in brothels would be protected. Read more on Jstor.

(Image credit: Wikimedia Commons)


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I agree with SenorMysterioso. Very tacky. But then, I think that political bumper stickers are tacky too. And for the record, when I was in the US, I was registered as non-affiliated, and I don't live in the US anymore so it's not an anti-Obama thing.
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more o-stupidity. america has lost her mind.

the foolish o-voters have been taken.

no we are not leaving iraq anytime soon

no we are not doing completely away with special interrigation techniques completely

no we are not in hurry going to raise taxes on the supposed rich as the one knows their spending employs people
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Very funny!

But the real Obama phones are not funny at all.

And I'm hearring that the free giveaways are continuing and expanding ti]o Virgin Mobile!

I can't belive a hip company like that is going to be giving away free phones to the "unemplyed".

Come on!
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